18 THE ROYAL APOLLONIA MAGAZINE • 2018 edition
CYPRUS CUISINE
RELISH CYPRUS … Live every flavour
Cypriot cuisine is as incredibly diverse as its multi-faceted history, with its own distinctive persona of soups, appetizers, main dishes along with delicacies and salads, dessertsand traditional Cypriot coffee and other beverages brewed on the island. Thisis true of its alcoholic drinks as well!
Soups
Trachanas soup is a staple and part of Cypriot tradition, an all year round soup. Trachanas are crumbly solid cakes prepared by processing soured goat’ s milk boiled with crushed wheat and salt, added to appropriatestock and heated togeta creamy porridge-like consistency. Ah and ful of small cubes of halloumi cheese are added in the final stages, along with seasoning.
If you are a fan of chicken, then be sure to try out Avgolemono, a classic soup with tender chicken, orzo( rice) pasta and a delicious bright lemon flavour. The chicken version of Avgolemono soup is preferred over beef and fishbaseversions.
Happen to be in Cyprus around Easter? Then you should stick around for our Easter special, the Magiritsa; a mouth-watering soup that is made from lamb offal and tripe. It is traditional to the Greek Orthodox churches as the meal that breaks the 40-day fasting period before Easter. It is served in the wee hours of Easter day, after the Divine Liturgy at midnight, you don’ t want to miss out, it’ s simply delicious.
Appetizers
Hot appetizers could include; Halloumi grill, a traditional Cypriot recipe which consists of grilled spongy brined cheese made from goat and sheep milk.
Dolmades; a stuffed vegetable dish made with fresh vine leaves, minced pork or beef, rice, tomatoes and some cinnamon or pepper seasoning.
Mussels Skhara, half-boiled kiwi mussels with olive oil and lemon juice
Feta Saganaki, roasted Feta cheese with sesamecrust, on chilli thyme honey.
Delicacies
The island of Cyprus has the dishes that fill the gourmet or food enthusiast with nothing but gusto and relish.
Lountza is a Cypriot delicacy ofsalted smoked pork loin that is marinated in red wine and smouldered with twigs and wood from aromatic trees or bushes.
Tsamarella is a crunchy treat from Cypriot traditional cooking which involves sun-roasting salted goat meat covered in dry oregano. It is usually served with wine or Zivania.
Another savour-packed tasty dish is Chiromeri, a yummy Cypriot meal made with smoked pork ham doused in red wine. It is usually served as Mezedes.
Originally served as an appetizer, Zalatina is made from the trotters of a pig, and could just end up being your main course. Snails may be slow, but they don’ t waste time to impress the senses and taste buds when smoked or fried with onions and some seasoning.
Salads
Horiatiki salad is a staple of the Mediterranean diet, containing vegetables, tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, red onions, protein from the feta and olives and olive oil, which is the main fat used.
Cypriot Grain Salad uses lots of exotic ingredients like deseeded pomegranate, currants, freekeh, at times, quinoa.
Cypriot-style potato salads are also a big hit, when served with grilled fish, meat, or as part of a big spread. Lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, olives, capers, coriander leaves and finely sliced spring onions add a tang to the dish.
The tomato salad uses sliced beefsteak tomatoes, local oregano or rigani which has a musky essence, halloumi, olive oil and vinegar.
Main Course
Souvla, large pieces of pork, lamb or chicken cookedon a long skewer over acharcoal barbecue, garnished with oregano, lemon and salt.
Souvlaki is Souvla with smaller pieces of meat, grilled bread as an option, more garnishes and sauces as well as fried potatoes. For tourists, souvlaki may be made with meat such as lamb, beef, chicken and sometimes fish( especially swordfish) and typically stuffed into a pitta.
Gyros is grilled meat slices instead of chunks, using different salads or dressings.
Sheftalia is a traditional Cypriot crépinette, a sausage without skin, using caul fat, or omentum, the membrane that surrounds the stomach of pig or lamb, to wrap the ingredients rather than sausage casing and grilled like a kebab.
Kleftiko is a traditional lamb dish that’ s prepared baked in a kiln and cooked for a minimum of 24 hours in the clay oven while it marinates in a mixture of lemon juice, and cinnamon.
Stifado is a traditional and fragrant stew is made with rabbit( and sometimes beef) that’ s simmered in wine, vinegar, onions, and popular Greek spices, like garlic and oregano.
Moussaka is a widely enjoyed casserole, baked in layers of eggplant and lamb, covered in béchamel sauce, a white sauce white sauce made with butter and flour cooked in milk.
Loukanika, a meal of pork sausages soaked in red wine, seasoned with coriander and pepper.
Yemista, a dish of stuffed vegetables such as peppers, tomatoes, onions, courgettes, aubergines or courgette petals.
18 THE ROYAL APOLLONIA MAGAZINE • 2018 edition